At the southern limit of Zostera marina in the Western Atlantic, sexual reproduction has provided a mechanism of recovery following thermal stress–related interannual losses. To understand the natural variability in seed quality in eelgrass meadows, flowering shoots were collected weekly to bi-weekly during the 2018 flowering season (March–June) from three sites in Topsail Sound, North Carolina (NC). Seeds were also collected during the period of maximum flowering (May) and examined for changes in seed composition (carbohydrates and proteins) and viability across seed sizes and between sites. The results of the present study show that while eelgrass phenology is following recognized temperature patterns, flowers matured 2–4 weeks earlier in the year than was previously documented. NC eelgrass populations also produced smaller seeds at greater densities than more northern perennial North American populations. In addition, viability did not differ across seed sizes suggesting that seed weight at the time of seed release may not be a reliable measure of seed quality. However, absolute carbohydrate and protein content did increase with seed size. More energy resources in larger compared with smaller seeds may result in better seed germination success. There was also site-based variation in seed length, width, area, and carbohydrate content despite similar temperature environments across the sites, indicating that local-scale factors may affect Z. marina seed size and composition. Information on variations in phenology, seed production, seed size, and seed composition across the species’ geographic range is necessary to better predict eelgrass response to biophysical disturbances and climate change.

在Zostera码头的南端在西大西洋，有性生殖提供了一种因与热应激有关的年际损失而恢复的机制。为了解鳗草草甸种子质量的自然变异性，在北卡罗来纳州北卡罗来纳州托普赛德桑德的三个地点，于2018年开花季节（3月至6月）每周一次至每两周收集一次开花芽。在最大开花期（5月）还收集了种子，并检查了种子组成（碳水化合物和蛋白质）的变化以及种子大小和部位之间的活力。本研究的结果表明，尽管鳗草物候遵循公认的温度模式，但一年中花朵比以前记录的早了2-4周。与北美洲多年生北美种群相比，北卡罗来纳鳗种群的密度也较小。另外，种子大小的生存力没有差异，表明种子释放时的种子重量可能不是种子质量的可靠指标。但是，绝对碳水化合物和蛋白质含量确实随种子大小而增加。与较小的种子相比，较大的种子具有更多的能源，可能会导致更好的种子发芽成功。尽管各地温度环境相似，但种子长度，宽度，面积和碳水化合物含量也存在基于地点的变化，这表明局部因素可能会影响 但是，绝对碳水化合物和蛋白质含量确实随种子大小而增加。与较小的种子相比，较大的种子具有更多的能源，可能会导致更好的种子发芽成功。尽管各地温度环境相似，但种子长度，宽度，面积和碳水化合物含量也存在基于地点的变化，这表明局部因素可能会影响 但是，绝对碳水化合物和蛋白质含量确实随种子大小而增加。与较小的种子相比，较大的种子具有更多的能源，可能会导致更好的种子发芽成功。尽管各地温度环境相似，但种子的长度，宽度，面积和碳水化合物含量也存在基于地点的变化，这表明局部因素可能会影响Z.滨海种子的大小和组成。有关该物种地理范围内物候，种子产量，种子大小和种子组成变化的信息对于更好地预测鳗草对生物物理干扰和气候变化的反应是必要的。